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Friday, February 14, 2014

Acústic Celler 2010 Acústic Blanc, Montsant

In Chicago a few years ago I enjoyed a great bottle of Acústic Celler red wine at a gastropub. Hoping they could duplicate the magic, I picked up a bottle of their 2010 Acústic Blanc.

The wine is from the Spanish Denominación de Origen (DO) of Montsant, which is in the southern province of Catalonia. Montsant is a ring-shaped region that almost encircles the more famous Priorat region.

We’ve been driven indoors by some inhospitable winter weather, venturing forth occasionally to burrow through the snow. We popped this bottle while having a game night with friends and enjoying the warmth of home.

Acústic Blanc is made from 60% Garnacha Blanca, 25% Macabeu, and the balance Garnacha Rojo and Pansal. We recently had some Garnacha Blanca and it is an austere grape – not splashing with opulent floral and fruit flavors. Thirty percent of the wine was fermented in oak for three months and the rest in stainless steel tanks – so the oak is just a whisper.

The flavor is slightly mineral with some chalk and citrus. It is bone dry with a clean finish. This could be a good match with seafood, but it was rather nondescript on its own. It was refreshing and enjoyable at the time, but not memorable and probably not the best choice for a brisk winter’s night.